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Where are the best Lobster Pounds and Seafood Restaurants in NS?

We will be In NS in July ~ but not on Cape Breton ~ arrive Halifax Airport around noon we will have 9 1/2 days (10 nights)

Plan when we arrive around noon is to drive a counterclockwise circle starting with 3-4 nights somewhere Wolfville or ????? and Annapolis Royal, down past Kejimkujik NP (spend some a few hours here) to Mahone Bay (4-5 nights) and Indian Harbor (2 nights) before headed home.

I want to eat Lobster and Lobster and fish constantly. I have only found 2 Lobster Pounds mentioned, in Halls Harbor and Ryer outside indian Harbor/Peggys Cove

What I have learned in my travels to the east coast for decades is that it is usually easier to eat lobster in Maine than in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. That said, pay attention to Lobster Suppers in churches. In regular restaurants, they treat lobster as if they were in Toronto, charging a fortune and making everything fancy.

We will be In NS in July ~ but not on Cape Breton ~ arrive Halifax Airport around noon we will have 9 1/2 days (10 nights)

Plan when we arrive around noon is to drive a counter clockwise circle starting with 3-4 nights somewhere Wolfville or ????? and Annapolis Royal, down past Kejimkujik NP (spend some a few hours here) to Mahon...See More
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Jennifer Hood You are missing all the places with the best lobster pounds!!! South west Nova!! Yarmouth, Shelburne , barrington Digby etc!!!
Like · Reply · 6 · 19 minutes ago via mobile

Lonnie Goodwin If you want the best lobster around , you have to come to Yarmouth and surrounding communities .
Like · Reply · 4 · 16 minutes ago

Bruce Bishop Communications Ltd. Wrenwood, you have to come to the Town of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia where you will find the amazing Stanley's Lobster Company - Overton, Yarmouth County, N.S.; Rudder's Seafood Restaurant & Brew Pub; and other restaurants where you can find lobster poutine (Merne's Family Diner); hot creamed lobster sandwiches (Windlass Restaurant and JoAnne's Quick & Tasty). You will NOT go hungry for lobster here! Ditto for fresh scallops, clams, haddock, etc etc etc
Like · Reply · 5 · 15 minutes ago

Simone Larkin That's what I was thinking. They aren't even going through the best part of NS. Best lobsters around. The south shore of Ns. Yarmouth, Pubnico, Woods Harbour, etc etc. Missing the best ports.
Like · Reply · 4 · 14 minutes ago via mobile

Bruce Bishop Communications Ltd. Depending on where you live, TheLobsterGuy.ca will be making a trek to southern Ontario at the beginning of February selling the live crustaceans from the back of his lobstermobile.
Like · Reply · 13 minutes ago

Sharon Perry-Williams Once again the South Shore and especially South West Nova doesn't count. And just how many lbs are landed here each year!! They don't call us the lobster capital for nothing!!! So by not travelling through the South Shore you are definitely missing the boat.
Like · Reply · 6 · 13 minutes ago via mobile

Doris Crosby Mercer YARMOUTH (end of the Province) has the best lobster. Come visit!!! I may now live in Ontario - but my first meal when 'home' is LOBSTER!!
Like · Reply · 1 · 7 minutes ago

Darryl Leblanc Isn't that usually the way !!!!
They'll call halifax or kentville the Lobster Capital of the world lol
Like · Reply · 5 minutes ago via mobile

Jean Knowles It all depends on how you want to see Nova Scotia. Do you want to do the standard tourist fare, or do you want the experience the real place and the undiscovered treasures that are waiting for you off the beaten path? If you're interested in the uniq...See More
Like · Reply · 2 minutes ago

Brandi Christen Shaw The kiwi café in Chester has AMAZING seafood chowder And of course, anywhere in Yarmouth!! You can't come to NS and not try creamed lobster or lobster poutine (only available on the south shore!)!!
Doesn't Stanley's lobster pound in Yarmouth have a beautiful hut on the beach that offers a lobster boil - anyone have more info on that??!
Like · Reply · about a minute ago via mobile

It all depends on how you want to see Nova Scotia. Do you want to do the standard tourist fare, or do you want the experience the real place and the undiscovered treasures that are waiting for you off the beaten path? If you're interested in the unique and the authentic, then be sure your trip includes Digby, Yarmouth and Shelburne counties, including the beaches of Cape Sable Island, where you might be the only one exploring miles of gleaming white sand. The fishing wharves here are real, working ports and not reconstructions aimed at attracting tourist dollars. There are quiet coves where herons wade in the morning stillness, rocky shores and lighthouses that can be seen for miles -- and some wonderful restaurants serving up the very best of Nova Scotia's seafood. There's fascinating cultural history in the Acadian communities, plus early New England connections in the Planter and Loyalist towns that came later. I hope you'll choose to spend a bit more time in this western area before continuing on to Mahone Bay and Lunenburg, beautiful though they are.

Thanks all, I have been researching and investigating many of your suggestions. We don't want to buy live Lobster and cook it ourselves we just want whole Lobster at a pound or a seafood restaurant...........and Lobster rolls or seafood chowder for lunch! Mussels too!

OK, you have my interest, we're convinced. If we want to visit Kejimkujik NP we'll do it as a day trip from Mahone Bay, but will probably just skip it.

So when we leave Annapolis Royal and take the coastal route, we'll stay in Yarmouth one night, and eat at Stanleys. Can you give me some places of interest to stop between Annapolis Royal and Yarmouth?

Digby is not far from Annapolis Royal and shouldn't be missed for their scallops! The drive from Dibgy to Yarmouth is along the "French Shore" but I haven't personally stopped in any of the towns along that coast.
I have been to several lobster dinners at The Shore Club which has been around over 50 years. It is very casual and the lobster is very fresh. The Shore Club in Hubbards is not far from Stafford's in Fox Point mentioned above. Shelburne is an historic town and they have restored their waterfront area. Take the old highway for a more scenic drive.

My mistake...meant Shatford not Stafford. I am curious to know if they are still in business as well as I used to love going there. I haven't eaten scallops in Digby for a long time but someone once told me the best scallops he had were at the Irving Oil Station on the corner before you reached the town! Probably that's gone, too.

Just this week a new restaurant opened in Barrington Passage, the heart of lobster country in southwestern Nova Scotia. It's called the Lobster Shack and the menu certainly looks promising! http://www.lobstershack.ca/

Thanks JeanKnowles ~ it's getting close so I am back to reviewing suggestions.

Halls Lobster Pound, Stanley's Lobster Company, Lobstershack, Shore Lobster Dinners are all on the radar. We're also eating at Cafe Compose one night in Annapolis Royal supposed to be nice water views and Digby Scallops.

Lobster is best when bought directly from the fishermen when they come into the wharf. Different fishing seasons for the province, so not always available. Lobster pounds are ok too, but the freshness as they come out of the ocean, is the ultimate lobster experience! So in absence of fresh, live lobster from the sea, my recommendations are:

Clearwater and Fisherman Market on the Bedford Highway will always have fresh seafood. Even most Sobey's grocery stores will cook the lobster for you from their tanks.

When purchasing fresh seafood, ask how long it has been out of water. When purchasing scallops, make sure they haven't been previously frozen. If they have, there will be considerable water retained in them, and you will need to drain them on papertowel in the fridge, usually overnight.

Forgot to mention, McDonald's in NS all sell lobster rolls. I know, not something you would normally trust, but it is "real" NS lobster. I tried one the other day and it was good. Could use more lobster, but a toasted hot dog roll, crunchy celery and not too much mayo, made for not a bad sandwich.

I must say the best deal for a lobster roll was at Halifax Seaport Farmer's Market - Saturday/Sunday. Fresh chunks of lobster they mix up in front of you on a fresh roll. The price was either $12 or $16 - can't remember - sorry!

I am the grand-daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Shatford, of Shatford's Lobster Pound. I regret to say they have both passed on. However, my brother took over the family business, and would be happy to serve you. The number is. 902- 857-9562. You can find the business on Highway 329 in Fox Point, about 30 minutes outside of Halifax. I wish you an enjoyable visit.

We went to Halls Lobster Pound the next day to see high tide (AMAZING!) and I had a Lobster roll for lunch. It was NOTgood, too much mayo and kind of shredded, like tuna fish salad.

When in Yarmouth we went to Stanley's Lobster Pound, it was delicious, and Ernie and Brian, the two brothers that own the business, were great fun, couldn't have been any nicer. Wouldn't have missed that experience for anything!

We passed Shatfords today while driving around, but will be staying the nex two nights near Peggy's Cove, so we plan on Ryers